After his defeat, Connors said, “I couldn’t find an opening. Whether I served wide balls, or kicks he was there. Everything he did was good: fine returns, short and long, and hard serves and volleys.”

This became Ashe’s third and final Grand Slam win — yet the victory was only a part of the history made that day, as Ashe became the first African American man to win the prestigious Grand Slam grass-court tournament which dates back to 1877. Althea Gibson became the first African American woman to win the title in 1958; Arthur became the first African American man 13 years later.

Arthur Ashe Auction

In our upcoming January auction, we have an incredible collection of Arthur Ashe items from his personal estate. Particular to Wimbledon, we have 15+ items, ranging from signed photos to commemorative awards.

We are also auctioning his yearly day-planners spanning his momentous career, in which he dutifully records his daily life, both on and off the court. His 1975 planner even notates his upcoming Wimbledon tournament — on the 23 June page, Arthur hand-writes, “WIMBLEDON STARTS”.

We’re auctioning a commemorative “Time” magazine award, printed with the article and photo that appeared in “Time” when Arthur made history at Wimbledon that year.

And an earlier Wimbledon award is being auctioned from a 1971 doubles tournament in which Ashe took a 2nd place finish with R.D. Ralston in Men’s Doubles. Little did he know that in a few short years, he’d be holding the prestigious tournament trophy in his hands, changing forever the course of history in tennis up to that point.

Recalling that moment went he won Wimbledon, he said, humbly and simply,

“When I took the match point, all the years, all the effort, all the support I had received over the years came together. It’s a long way from Brook Field to Wimbledon.”